Jackson Read online

  My face is flushed. I hand the two cups across the counter and tell the employee standing next to me to take over.

  I start walking to the back and motion for Jackson to follow me.

  As soon as the door shuts behind him, I start in on him. “Jackson, this is my business here. I can’t be having my one-night stand announcing to the room that we slept together last night.”

  “One-night stand? You’re crazy if you think that was going to happen only one night. Is that what you thought? Honey, no way. First of all, I’ve wanted you since I was a senior in high school and I was too old…”

  I gasp. “Don’t lie to me. Don’t you dare say that.”

  He turns me around and leans me against the door. He laces his hands through mine and holds them against the door above my head. “I’m not lying to you. I did like you. But you were too young for me and you were my little sister’s best friend. But now, well now, I don’t care how old you are or whose best friend you are. I got a taste of you on my tongue and I’m not letting you go.”

  “So what? You’re telling me that we are going to be fu… sex buddies?” I ask him plainly, but the fact that I almost cursed shows that emotion is taking over on me.

  “No. I’m not telling you that. I’m telling you that we’re going to date. That most likely you are going to spend every night in my bed or I’ll be in yours. We’re going to see where this goes,” he tells me forcefully.

  Chapter 6

  Jackson

  I want to tell her that she’s going to marry me and give me kids, but I feel that would be a little too much right now for her to deal with. She’s already looking at me like I’m crazy.

  She won’t look at me. I release her hands and hold her face steady, until she’s looking back at me stubbornly. “I don’t think this is a good idea.”

  I lean in to her until our bodies are barely touching. With every breath she takes, her breasts graze my chest. “Why not?”

  She slides her hands up my stomach and then she grabs on to my shirt with her fists. “I’ve liked you for so long, Jackson. I just think that we need to slow this down. You’re still getting over everything with Emily. I just don’t want to be your rebound girl. I don’t think my heart could take that.”

  I shake my head side to side. “Why does everyone think I’m still stuck on Emily? I’m not. I don’t even think about her. And you’re not my rebound girl. You’re, well, you’re my girl. C’mon, Meg. The woman I know is strong and fearless. Give me a chance. Give us a chance.”

  I can see the indecision in her eyes. I reach down and put my lips on hers. Almost instantly her lips open under mine. The kiss deepens and her right leg raises and wraps around my hips, pulling me into her. I’m about to lay her across her desk when there’s a knock on the door.

  She pulls back from me and her foot hits the floor. “Oh, shoot. I have five interviews lined up, Jackson. I have to go out there.”

  “Okay. I’ll let you go back out there, but first I want you to promise me that you will be at my house when I get home.” I still have her held in my arms. I don’t want to let her go.

  She thinks about it and I’m starting to think that I will need to convince her, but then she says softly, “What time do you want me there?”

  I put my hands on each side of her face. The knock at the door sounds again and Megan hollers through the door, “Give them a coffee. Tell them I’ll be right there.”

  I kiss her lightly, only because I can’t have her near me and not have my mouth on her. “I should be home around six. If you get there before me, I want you naked in my bed. There’s an extra key hidden under the potted plant on my porch.”

  She nods her head at me. “I’ll be there. But I really need to go do these interviews.”

  I give her another kiss and open the door. Her lips are swollen and her eyes are filled with lust. “Give me your phone.”

  She reaches in the pocket of her apron and pulls it out, handing it to me. I call my cell and quickly save my number in her phone. “This way I can get a hold of you. I freaked out a little when you were gone this morning.”

  She takes her phone back and I can tell she’s overwhelmed with it all.

  Smiling at her, I tell her, “Okay. I’m going to grab a coffee. I barely got any sleep last night. Then I’m going to head to the job site.” I tease her, “Hey, by the way, how did you get home this morning?”

  She smiles. “Uber. I had to steal one of your shirts, though, for the ride home.” She pulls her apron to the side and shows me my AC/DC T-shirt that she’s wearing.

  “Hey, that’s my favorite shirt,” I tell her, trying to pull her back against me. Damn, I like the thought of her in my shirt.

  She rolls her eyes at me. “I’ll give it back.”

  I shake my head at her. “No. I like you in my shirt.”

  She smiles at me, gives me one last kiss and then walks over to a man sitting in a corner booth. He gets up as she approaches and I can’t help but notice when he smiles at her appreciatively. I watch them as I stand in line and once I have a coffee in hand, I walk over to the booth. This may be a bad move on my part, but I don’t even try to talk myself out of it.

  Once I approach the table, I apologize for interrupting. Then I lean down and kiss Megan on the lips. “I’ll see you at home later, honey. Be careful.”

  The look on her face makes it worth it. She tries to be professional but I see the smile wanting to lift on her lips. Yep, I can’t wait until I get home later.

  Megan

  The day passes by quickly and I have to admit I’m excited about seeing Jackson. I’m scared too. He acts like he’s over Emily, but I don’t know whether to believe him or not. It’s only been a month. I leave work early, run home and grab an overnight bag and then rush over to his house. I sort of hope I get there before he does. I would like to surprise him.

  When I pull into his driveway, his truck isn’t here, unless maybe he’s parked in the garage. There is another car, but it’s parked in the corner of the driveway, making me wonder if maybe it was there last night and I didn’t notice it.

  I look under the pot and the key is not there. I knock on the door and I see the curtains move in the window and so I know that someone is there. When no one answers, I knock again. I wait a few seconds and then decide to call him. Picking up my phone, I’m about to hit the connect button when the door flings open. I raise my head with a smile on my face and am stunned. Standing before me is Emily, with one of Jackson’s shirts on and nothing else. Her makeup and hair is all mussed and it really, truly she looks like she just got out of bed.

  “Oh hey, I’m sorry. Jackson’s in the shower but he told me to tell you not to bother staying.” She’s smiling and I know she realizes the blow she just gave me. My hand goes to my chest and the pain is excruciating. So this is what it feels like. My heart is ripping in two. I’m just staring at her, speechless and I know the pain is etched on my face. I can’t breathe. Darn, I can’t breathe. I bend over, trying to take deep breaths.

  She steps out of the door and her long, thin legs are in my sight. She sounds concerned, but I know better. “Hey, are you all right?” she asks me.

  I merely nod my head and then start running to my car. I don’t look at her, I don’t look back. I can’t. Once in the car, I put it in reverse and drive back home, tears rolling down my face the whole way.

  Chapter 7

  Jackson

  I got stuck at work a little later, but I had no choice since I took half the morning off. When I finally leave the job site, I am rushing home and for the first time in a long time, I’m excited about getting there. I hope that Megan’s already there waiting for me.

  Pulling into the driveway, I see that Emily’s car is here, and I see her sitting on my porch. I could just pull into the garage and ignore her, but I really don’t want her here when Megan gets here.

  I turn off the truck and walk up the sidewalk slowly. Fuck. I hate dealing with this.

  “E
mily, I don’t know why you’re here but the answer is no.”

  “C’mon, Jackson. I messed up. I know I did. But I want you back. I’ll never hurt you again.” She starts crying.

  With my key in the door, I turn around to her. She’s good, I’ll give her that. She has the tears rolling down her face. She looks sincere. But I know the truth. I know that she is evil and conniving.

  “You’re right, Emily,” I say. “You won’t ever hurt me again. The day I walked in on you and found you with that other man has turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me. If that hadn’t happened we would probably still be together and I would be missing out on the love of my life. So, actually I owe you a thanks.” With that I turn the nob and walk into my house, slamming the door behind me.

  I can hear her screaming at me through the door, but I tune her out. Nothing is going to get me down tonight.

  Nothing.

  At least I thought so until three hours pass and there’s no sign of Megan and she’s not returning my texts or my phone calls.

  I don’t want to leave in case she shows up and so I call my sister. “Abby, have you talked to Megan tonight?”

  “Well, hello to you too, big brother!” she smarts back.

  “Abby! Have you talked to Megan?” I ask her urgently.

  “Geez! Chill. No. Not since last night at the party,” she admits finally.

  “Okay. Well she was supposed to be here hours ago and she’s not answering her phone. Can you check on her?” I plead with her.

  I can hear the smile on her face. “So I guess me interfering last night worked out, huh?”

  I put my head in my hand. “Yes, and I will be sure to thank you later. But for now, will you try to get a hold of her? I’m worried.”

  “Yes. I’ll call you right back,” she replies.

  I sit and stare at my phone for three minutes. I watch the clock flip and another minute goes by. I start to dial and it rings.

  “Is she okay?” I ask into the phone instantly.

  Silence. That’s all I get.

  “Abby, is she okay?” I yell into the phone.

  Her voice is terse and I can tell she’s pissed off. “What did you do to her?”

  Stuttering, my mind starts whirling. “I didn’t do anything to her. Where is she?”

  She’s quiet for a moment and then she starts speaking really softly. “Jackson, whatever you did or she thinks you did is bad. She’s really messed up right now. She could barely talk on the phone for crying so hard. She wouldn’t tell me what happened. She just made me promise not to tell you where she lives.”

  “Fuck that!” I tell her. “Where is she at, Abby? I promise I didn’t do anything. There has to be a misunderstanding or something. She was fine when I left her today at the coffee shop. Please, just tell me where she is.”

  “She’s packing. She’s going out of town for a few days. She’s even having me fill in some at the shop and I’ve never even made coffee before. She’s desperate to get away.”

  “Tell me where she is. Now, Abby. I promise I’m not going to hurt her. I’m going to fix this,” I plead with her.

  “I promised her…” she starts.

  “She shouldn’t be driving like this. Please, let me go fix this. I’m begging you, Abby. Let me just make sure she’s okay. I won’t bother her,” I promise her as I pace the room before grabbing my keys and running outside. Hell, I’ll drive all over town if I have to.

  Abby’s silent for such a long time I finally ask, “Abby, you still there?”

  “She lives on Webster Road. Third house on the right. But Jackson, I’m telling you if you don’t fix this…”

  “I will… I promise you. Thanks, sis.” I hang up the phone and take off across town, praying I’m not too late.

  When I get to her house, I walk up the steps and all the lights are off and no cars are in the driveway. I pound my hands on the door, but she never answers.

  I sit down on her porch with my head in my hands. What the hell happened?

  I pick up my phone and send her a text.

  Please be safe driving. You shouldn’t be driving when you’re upset.

  Then another.

  I don’t know what I did, but I promise you that I won’t hurt you. Please come home and talk to me.

  I stare at my phone, waiting for a response, but it never comes.

  Please, Meg. Please call me, text me, anything. Just let me know you’re okay.

  I sit on her front stoop for hours before I finally go home. The pain in my chest is real. The pain is worse than anything I’ve ever felt before.

  Megan

  I drive an hour away to stay in a cabin in the mountains. I always loved coming here when I was a kid. It gives me a certain solace that I can’t find anywhere else.

  By my second day here, I’m starting to calm down. I pick up my phone to call Abby. The last text she sent me, she threatened to call 911 so I figure I had better call her.

  “Hello?” she answers.

  “Hey, Abbs. I’m sorry…” I start.

  She takes a deep breath and lets loose on me. “ Are you kidding me? Meg, you can’t just disappear like that. What the hell happened?”

  I hear her muffle the phone like she’s talking to someone and then I hear a door slam.

  “If you’re at work, I can call you later,” I tell her. I know that Jackson is probably somewhere close by and I don’t want him knowing I’m on the phone.

  “No, no. It’s fine. I took a break and came outside. Where are you?” she asks me.

  “A cabin in the woods,” I tell her generically. I don’t want her to know exactly where I’m at, since I know she will tell her brother.

  “A cabin in the woods? Come home. This is crazy. Jackson is worried sick about you. He looks like hell and is barking orders at everyone. Please come home and work this out.”

  I wipe at the tears falling down my face. I thought I could hold it together, but obviously not. “He’s back with Emily.”

  “Bullshit!” she yells into the phone. “There’s no way.”

  “Abby, it’s okay. I don’t want this to come between you and Jackson. This is between me and him,” I tell her worriedly. I definitely don’t want this to affect their relationship.

  “It’s bullshit, Megan. There’s no way they are back together.” I swear I can picture her with her hand on her hip wanting to give me a ‘what for.’

  “It’s true, Abby. I wouldn’t have believed it either if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes. I went to his house and she answered the door in nothing but his T-shirt. He was in the shower. She told me – she told me they were back together.” I try to hold it together, but I start sobbing into the phone.

  She’s quiet for such a long time I start to think she hung up on me. “Abby?”

  Quietly, she responds, “Megan. I know you are convinced of what you saw. But it’s not adding up. He’s a mess. He was so upset when you didn’t show up at his house. I’ve never ever seen my brother this torn up. It just doesn’t sound like something he would do.”

  I can’t stop the hope that flares in my chest, but almost instantly I dampen it down. I know what I saw.

  “Yea, uh, it’s fine though. I want him to be happy. I thought he seemed to have gotten over Emily really fast. You can’t blame someone for trying to work things out. I get it.” I blabber on and on to her.

  “Just come home. We can work this out,” she pleads with me.

  I look out at the mountains in front of me and a peace comes over me. “I’ll be back tomorrow sometime. I have to work on Thursday. But there’s nothing to work out. It was a fling. I don’t really have a lot of time anyway, you know, with the coffee shop and everything.”

  “Oh, Megan,” she says softly and I can hear the pity and the worry in her voice.

  “So, I’ll be home tomorrow and maybe we can get together this week for dinner or something. I just wanted to call you so you would stop worrying. I’m fine. I love you, Abbs!” I
smile into the phone.

  “Love you, too Meg. Please be careful.”

  Chapter 8

  Jackson

  I didn’t realize that Abby walked off the job site until I asked someone and they pointed at the door. When I go outside, I hear her say into the phone, “Just come home. We can work this out.” And instantly I know that Megan is on the other end.

  I walk straight up to Abby and try to take the phone. She gives me the death glare and points her finger in my chest. I’m like three times her size, I know I can overpower her, but there’s something in the look on her face that stops me.

  When she hangs up the phone, I ask her, “Where is she? Is she okay?”

  “What the fuck did you do?” Now, my sister was raised in construction. Our dad always had us at the construction site when he was working. Enough that Abby and I followed in his footsteps. But she never usually cusses. Unless she feels she needs to get her point across.

  I hold my hands up in front of me like I’m surrendering. “What? I didn’t do anything.”

  She eyes me for a minute and then really calmly explains, “She said she went to your house the other night. She said that Emily answered your door wearing only your T-shirt. Emily told her that you were in the shower and you two were getting back together.”

  It’s like a bomb has been dropped. My mind is whirling. My eyes dart everywhere as I try to puzzle all the pieces together. Seconds go by and then it finally hits me. “That bitch,” I scream.

  “What is it?” Abby asks me.

  “I didn’t do that. She was at my house, but I wasn’t. Fuck. Where is Megan?” I stutter out.

  “She’s at a cabin in the woods,” she tells me then laughs.

  “Where is she, Abby?” I ask her again, not the least bit amused.

  “She wouldn’t tell me. She did say she will be home tomorrow because she has to work Thursday. But that’s it.” She starts walking back inside.

  I stand there for a minute trying to come up with a plan. “Let’s get to work. I’m taking tomorrow off,” I tell her as I stroll past her and back into the house we are working on.